... pay as above and use degraded resolution from component out on the comcast box.

Are you _sure_ they're downsampling the component out signal to something less than HD? Groups have certainly threatened to do so to combat the "analog hole" but I haven't heard of any instances where they have actually done so.

Yes, I agree with ceenvee703. My HD set has no HDMI at all so Comcast had better not turn off component outputs. Still, its not an ideal situation to have to buy a $200 box to digitize the component signal to use with Myth.

Still, its not an ideal situation to have to buy a $200 box to digitize the component signal to use with Myth.

Encrypted content is not an ideal situation, period. Most people here have spent additional money on devices because of it. Clear QAM tuners rendered obsolete, ir blasting necessary to work around cable company boxes, or specialized devices like you mentioned. That's progress for ya.

I left on vacation Dec 8 with my system working and got back on the 15th to find everything except the OTA channels encrypted (partial LAMc lock) - no picture or sound anymore. Game over. Note that I'm still paying the same basic cable fee I've been paying all along. The only options now are:

When I read this I was left with the impression that everything but OTA channels were encrypted. I just read Comcast's published memoon the topic and it looks like we should still be able to tune the entire basic tier using clear QAM -- relevant portions of the memo quoted below. I realize that this still locks us out of the expanded basic tier that we are paying for -- on my end I am simply going to reduce my level of service to basic service for $18/month, which will give me the first ~30 channels plus all the OTA hidefs.

Marc

Quote:

Furthermore, Limited Basic customers with QAM TVs will be able to view Limited Basic digital channels without additional equipment.

Quote:

Limited Basic customers with a QAM TV would continue to be able to view broadcast HD channels without Comcast equipment. There is no charge for HD content only equipment.

_________________Marc

The views expressed are my own and do not necessarily reflect the views of my employer.

Please note that there is a BIG difference between Limited Basic cable and Basic Cable.

Limited Basic is pretty much just your locals plus maybe WGN, ABC Family and maybe a home shopping channel I believe. Basic is the first ~30 channels.

I went to the Comcast siteand 3 of the packages they have listed are defined as follows:

1. Limited basic: The first 30 channels plus a few, as listed below.
2. Expanded basic: A bunch more channels including USA, MTV, SciFi, etc.
3. Standard, which appears to be the union of "Limited basic" and "Expanded Basic".

It looks like there technically is no package named "Basic" and limited basic is those first ~30 channels I was referring to in my original post.

I followed the directions on this web page yesterda and was able to tune my HDHomeRun to the extended basic channel (i.e. those below 100).

It appears that the channel IDs are scrambled, but once discovered and mapped into the myth database all is well!

Yes, I do use that program -- its great. The point is that Comcast is in the process of encrypting the expanded basic channels -- see the link to their memoin my earlier post. They have already done this in some markets. Once this is done, your clear QAM tuner will not be able to tune those channels.

_________________Marc

The views expressed are my own and do not necessarily reflect the views of my employer.

I followed the directions on this web page yesterda and was able to tune my HDHomeRun to the extended basic channel (i.e. those below 100).

It appears that the channel IDs are scrambled, but once discovered and mapped into the myth database all is well!

Yes, I do use that program -- its great. The point is that Comcast is in the process of encrypting the expanded basic channels -- see the link to their memoin my earlier post. They have already done this in some markets. Once this is done, your clear QAM tuner will not be able to tune those channels.

Thanks - you explained it much better than I did.

The irritating part is the free DTA that Comcast supplies outputs *analog*, which leads to annoying setup issues that I discussed in another thread.

Yes, I do use that program -- its great. The point is that Comcast is in the process of encrypting the expanded basic channels -- see the link to their memoin my earlier post. They have already done this in some markets. Once this is done, your clear QAM tuner will not be able to tune those channels.

Well. I read the memo a little differently and was curious. Comcast recently did an upgrade in my area. They changed the channel frequencies used from HRC to standard cable. They still transmit the analog signals from 1 to 77. I am told the analog will go away by March. They also simulcast the basic channels in digital. In general, those digital channels are not available to QAM capable devices as they scramble the table that maps station callsigns and virtual channels. I could not scan for channels with my HDHomeRun or my Toshiba HDTV. Therefore, by definition my QAM tuners do not work. I could receive QAM on my HDHomeRun only after I ran scte65scan. I thought one could interpret the Comcast memo as simply scrambling the table of call signs and virtual channels. I was hoping that was all Comcast would do. I'll wait and see. I'm in the northwest suburbs of Chicago.

It's happening in Atlanta. As of April 7 2010, the analog signals will be greatly diminished. According to the web site:

Quote:

4. What if I don't do anything?Any TV connected directly to Comcast service without a digital device will eventually lose access to some of the channels it currently receives. You’ll keep the 15-30 Comcast Basic Cable channels, (local broadcast TV stations, plus local government, education and public access channels) but you'll lose all Expanded Basic channels, like Disney, CNN, Lifetime and 30 to 50 others.

Yes, I do use that program -- its great. The point is that Comcast is in the process of encrypting the expanded basic channels -- see the link to their memoin my earlier post. They have already done this in some markets. Once this is done, your clear QAM tuner will not be able to tune those channels.

Well. I read the memo a little differently and was curious. Comcast recently did an upgrade in my area. They changed the channel frequencies used from HRC to standard cable. They still transmit the analog signals from 1 to 77. I am told the analog will go away by March. They also simulcast the basic channels in digital. In general, those digital channels are not available to QAM capable devices as they scramble the table that maps station callsigns and virtual channels. I could not scan for channels with my HDHomeRun or my Toshiba HDTV. Therefore, by definition my QAM tuners do not work. I could receive QAM on my HDHomeRun only after I ran scte65scan. I thought one could interpret the Comcast memo as simply scrambling the table of call signs and virtual channels. I was hoping that was all Comcast would do. I'll wait and see. I'm in the northwest suburbs of Chicago.

Well. It happened. On 3/19/10, I lost all my non over-the-air channels over my hdhomerun. Too bad, it had worked so well....

I finally bought a 46" LCD. I got the HD channels going thru the TV tuner and was geeked. Within a month of knowing how good it can be Comcast in SE Michigan removed many of the channels so that a box would be required. I got so frustrated with them. I am now with WOW.

I am finding since using Myth DVR for 3+ years that I barely have the TV on unless I planned out what I'm going to watch. I can get alot of content at local Library, or NetFlix $15/month and the primary networks I watch mostly anyways and they are OTA free. Hulu and other content websites are great also. Problem is 2 kids require Disney and Nick.

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